A local priest becomes suspicious when 12-year-old Jodie (the title character of new series The Chosen One) escapes death in a harrowing accident and suddenly begins to show signs of supernatural powers. Jodie’s friend Tuka, a Yaqui and Mexican kid, defends him. Another friend, Magda, needs a miracle of her own. Even the guy who bullies Jodie at school demands a healing favor. Meanwhile, a shadowy investigator shows up, trying to dig up proof. Now Jodie’s mom decides it’s time they leave town again — before the truth comes out.

Set in the late ’90s in Mexico, The Chosen One is a six-episode adaptation of the popular American Jesus graphic novel trilogy by Mark Millar and Peter Gross. It’s Millar’s third comic to be adapted into a series by Netflix. 

When will The Chosen One be released?

Stream all six episodes on Netflix now.

Where can I find the trailer for The Chosen One?

Scroll up to the top of this article and check it out here:

Who’s in the cast of The Chosen One?

• Bobby Luhnow, a newcomer British Mexican actor, as Jodie 
• Dianna Agron (Glee, The Family, I Am Number Four) as Sarah, Jodie’s mother
• Lilith Curiel as Magda, the only girl in Jodie’s crew of close friends, who has a complicated family situation and a serious crush on Jodie
• Juanito Anguamea as Tuka, one of Jodie’s best friends. Like his character, a kid of Yaqui origin who holds both Indigenous and Catholic beliefs, the actor has Yaqui roots and speaks the language.
• Patricio Serna Meza as Angelo, a local kid who bullies Jodie
• Tenoch Huerta (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, The Forever Purge, Sin Nombre) as Lemuel, a special agent for a mysterious organization who arrives in town to investigate Jodie’s powers
• Elvis Zamora as Elvis, a local transgender woman and a baker who’s Sarah’s closest friend in town and an aunt figure for Jodie
• Carlos Bardem (Cell 211, Assassin’s Creed, Che: Part Two) as Pastor Cruz, a Catholic priest who’s going through a crisis of faith

What happens in The Chosen One?

Growing up in the late ’90s in a small town in Baja California Sur, Mexico, 12-year-old Jodie (Bobby Luhnow) sticks mostly to his tight group of friends. At home he’s raised by a single mom (Dianna Agron). At school he gets bullied once in a while because of his “gringo” looks. But when he and his friends set out on an epic quest in the desert, Jodie somehow survives a freak accident that by all accounts should have been fatal. 

Back home in Santa Rosalía, a town where Catholicism mingles with local Yaqui Indigenous traditions, no one can explain it or believe it. Then, out of nowhere, Jodie begins to perform what seem like miracles, healing the sick and turning water into wine. His actions draw crowds — and a fair amount of skepticism. Is Jodie a savior or a false prophet — or something far darker and more dangerous? A stranger shows up in town, asking too many questions. And after Jodie’s mom makes a major confession to her son, Jodie’s more determined than ever to fulfill his destiny, even as the discovery of his past threatens his future.

Is The Chosen One based on a book?

Yes, it’s based on American Jesus, the popular graphic novel series by writer Mark Millar and artist Peter Gross. 

Is The Chosen One based on a true story?

No, The Chosen One is a fantasy drama series.

Where does The Chosen One take place?

Although the American Jesus comic books were originally set in the Chicago suburbs, for their adaptation, filmmaking brothers Everardo and Leopoldo Gout moved the setting to the Mexican state of Baja California Sur — specifically, a small former mining town surrounded by desert, sea, and mountains. The majority of filming was done on location there, in a region studded with Catholic iconography, with a portion shot in Mexico City.

“Relocating [The Chosen One] to Mexico makes the mythological much more authentic and the apocalyptic all the more real,” Millar, co-creator of American Jesus, told Netflix.